I saw the warrior dancing in her brave yellow tunic, while the Moon cheered, and the Dragon lugged his slow tale back into the old familiar lair. The Moon had many fine things to say, gifted as she is in all things gabby, while the Monkey pranced about, leaping over the ordinary, explaining the extraordinary to everyone but the Dragon. He has scaled the heights, the depths, and braved epic tales. Bruised and walking a low road, Dragon follows the Monkey through the moves and into another sunset, as the Moon spied in on us from time to time and made sure we weren’t going to give up, go blind or crazy. Hmm, funny how no one can ever quite imitate the Monkey, following an acrobatic dream in her head, and never looking down. Still, too many battles fought and lost to keep pace today. Scales are heavy on one side, and the old tale will not let me leave the ground and rise up … as a Dragon really should.

To be as content as the Moon, or as fearless as a Monkey, queen of the mimes, once proud Dragons are reminded of the hardest lesson. Be still. Take flight within. Blessed new stars lead the way. Disappear in their spotlight. Lend your last but not least courage to the young yellow warrior. Let the light of the kind moon shine silver off your black hide, and release all prospect of treasure.

These are your riches anew. Walk into night unbowed. Take flight over black keys though no one follows, mimics, or applauds. The heights are there for those who deliver a new vision. Hold their sky open. The Moon, the Monkey, and you are as unlikely and perpetual as three of a perfect pair. Any idiot can laugh and see, after sixty revolutions around the source, it’s time to admire how the Moon shadows the Monkey, playing brave tricks we all want to applaud and see.

[Gary D Aker lives in Portland, Oregon, where he pursues dance and photography in addition to his usual and unusual writing duties. He has been writing and publishing all manner of work for over thirty-five years. He has two sequential crime novels published as e-Books on Amazon and most other platforms, Delusion and North of Likely. He is an avid baseball fan — the game with no clock — and his great uncle is in the Hall of Fame.]